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Re: BIG


> 
> If photography is supposed to be an "imitation of reality" there goes 100
> years of claiming it's *art* down the drain.  Or back to Bougereau (for
> those who can spell it).

Now, now Judy, who says *art* isn't an imitation of reality. Is not Chardin
big this year? What about most of the history of *art*? What about those
Dordogne cave drawings?
> 
> The irony is that 99 out of 100 people "seeing" these photographs, see
> them only in reproduction in magazines, where they're all about the same
> size, measured in inches.
That may well be an ironic circumstance that most folk do not see the *real*
image but I don't give a rat's keester about that. The fact is that the
Wall's Struth's and Novak's actually created this things of scale (but for
Novak's projections) and the point is that one needs to experience them/it.
Yosemite aint Yosemite until you've walked by Merced and Giza aint Giza
until you've discovered how close the highway is and the heat of the sand
and, gosh Judy, NYC aint NYC until Š well, you've seen the Hudson.
> 
> I myself agree with Pam -- aside from the *hit* of the size, "migod that's
> big" or "how did they do that !!??"  (usually, rest assured, by lab or
> machine) it's hard to relate to the work. If it's under glass, you get
> mostly reflections in that scale, almost impossible to hang without a
> sharp line of ceiling lights showing, etc. etc. etc.  If it's not under
> glass, the paper is at risk, and that's another distraction...
Now, here I will agree with you. I get very little from the majority of the
large works. Wall's wall sized pieces do echo for me but my favorites at the
moment are Susan Derges' photograms of English streams. Maybe they are not
THAT big but most wonderful.

Unfair to say that Mona Lisa is dinky. Why do people call it *art*? I find a
large number of art pieces throughout the history of art much more
interesting Š and I hope it is fair to say Š better. The Mona Lisa is
special of course. I don't wish to take anything away from it. But when
you're walking through the Louvre, you can always tell when you are near the
Mona Lisa by the crowds.